The feud between Antonio Brown and the Pittsburgh Steelers dredged up a serious accusation against quarterback Ben Roethlisberger Thursday morning.

And then, just like that, the accusation was … muddled by an apparent retraction.

Retired Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall got into a conversation with a Twitter user about his former teammate and called Roethlisberger "a racist quarterback." He backtracked about three hours later, saying "B's not racist. Just like AB's not a dirtbag."

Alright, I'll end the mystery… B's racist and @AB84's black. He had to catch balls from a racist quarterback. Every honest player knows it, it's not a big deal. He was just supposed to take his lickings and move on, like a slave for real. https://t.co/ubI39UDauY

By no stretch am I saying @AB84's been without guilt this off-season. I just hope to see more compassion and examination, for a guy who gave everything he had until he couldn't bring himself to do it, for even one more game…